Wildfire spreads near popular French tourist town as 20,000 people are moved to safety

PARIS — About 20,000 people were evacuated from towns and vacation resorts along the French Atlantic coast Thursday as the latest in series of wildfires raged and hundreds of firefighters were dispatched to tackle it.

Local authorities said the fire in a forest near the town of Lège Cap-Ferret, southwest of Bordeaux, has spread over more than 2,400 hectares (5,900 acres), though no injuries have been reported.

The prefect, or head, of the surrounding Gironde region, Sophie Brocas, said some 700 firefighters — including forces that traveled from the Paris region — have been deployed. The fire has come within 300 meters (980 feet) of the first homes in Lège, and water bombers are also operating in the area.

“Weather conditions remain unfavorable, with adverse wind direction and erratic gusts,” she said.

More than 10,000 people, including tourists staying at holiday camps and campgrounds, were moved to safety overnight, along with more than 1,000 residents living in residential areas along the forest edge.

Authorities later evacuated the village of Claouey, including residents staying at several campsites, as a precautionary measure. Brocas said the evacuation involved 8,800 people.

Several municipalities have opened reception and respite centers for evacuees, the prefecture said.

Southern Europe has seen multiple large fires this summer. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires.

Following a succession of heat waves that started even before the summer, wildfires have raged across France, devastating large swaths of land amid record temperatures and dry weather. Plants and vegetation are under severe water stress, adding to the danger of fires.

According to Interior Minister Laurent Nunez, more than 12,500 wildfires have broken out since the beginning of the year, and almost 44,000 hectares have already burned.

Elsewhere in Europe, wildfires continued to rage across Sicily on Thursday, a day after a firefighter was killed during operations to put out a blaze in Caltanissetta, the national fire department said.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella sent a note of condolences to the family and colleagues of the firefighter, Alessandro Marchì, who was a department head.

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